Chief sustainability officer

The chief sustainability officer, sometimes known by other titles, is the corporate title of an executive position within a corporation that is in charge of the corporation's "environmental" programs. Several companies have created such environmental manager positions in the 21st century to formalize their commitment to the environment. The rise of the investor ESG (Environment, Social and Governance) movement and stakeholder capitalism, has increased the need for corporations to address sustainability and social issues across their value chain, and address growing needs of external stakeholders.^[1] Normally these responsibilities rest with the facility manager, who has provided cost effective resource and environmental control as part of the basic services necessary for the company to function. However, as sustainability initiatives have expanded beyond the facility — so has the importance of the position to what is now a C-level executive role. The position of CSO has not been standardized across industries and individual companies which leads it to take on differing roles depending on the organization.  The position has also been challenged as symbolic, in that it does not actually have the effect of increasing sustainable practices.

As of 2018, 44 CSOs were identified at largest companies in the world, with most having the rank of vice president or higher, and according to the Weinreb Group 45% of CSOs are women and 55% men as of 2018. A 2011 study^[2] found that the majority of top corporate sustainability executives are two degrees removed from their CEO in the corporate hierarchy, meaning that their boss reports to the CEO.